Sr. Manufacturing Engineer (Starship Components Operations)

SpaceX•Hawthorne, CA

3h•$135,000 - $215,000

About The Position

The Starship Components Operations Build team owns factory design and material flow to support manufacturing, machining, and testing of flow control devices and mechanisms used on Starship/Super Heavy, including regulators, butterfly valves, and flap/fin actuators. The Components Operations Engineering team develops and expands the factories that produce these components. Its scope includes factory build and expansion, process flow, machine moves, and project planning. The role focuses on bringing detailed, simple operational plans to the factory floor and suits someone who enjoys strategic planning, managing competing priorities, improving part flow, and spending significant time away from a desk. The position requires hands-on factory and production-area layout work, vendor coordination, process improvement, project execution, and analysis to guide production decisions. The successful candidate will work directly with hardware on the production floor and may need to travel or work long hours or weekends when necessary. Applicants must meet SpaceX’s ITAR eligibility requirements: be a U.S. citizen or national, a U.S. lawful permanent resident, a refugee or asylee under the cited statutes, or be eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in physics or an engineering discipline.
At least 5 years of mechanical design or hands-on manufacturing experience; internships and project teams qualify.
Ability to stand for long durations and work directly with hardware on the floor.
Ability to stoop and bend when necessary.
Ability to travel and work long hours or weekends when necessary.
Must meet the stated ITAR eligibility requirements or be eligible to obtain required U.S. Department of State authorizations.

Nice To Haves

Process engineering experience, including project management, capacity modeling, process mapping, and layouts.
Experience with inventory, production, and capacity planning, including MRP/ERP systems.
Experience as an industrial, operations, process, or manufacturing engineer in a developmental manufacturing environment.
Experience with industrial facilities, including HVAC, gases, electrical, and structural/foundation systems.
At least 5 years of experience using Excel, SQL, or Python/R for analysis or modeling dynamic systems.
Experience with lean, Six Sigma, and related production principles.
Ability to work well across teams and skill sets to find the simplest and best solution.
Experience contributing to multidisciplinary and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

Design and own factory and production-area layouts using clear visual indicators and linear flow.
Conduct job walks with vendors, negotiate prices, and hold vendors to schedule.
Host process walks of production lines, identify steps that can be deleted or simplified, and help initiate changes.
Execute complex projects in the minimum amount of time and expense to the business.
Work hands-on and lead by example to complete projects rapidly.
Develop system and process improvements across production teams.
Develop tools to analyze delivery, capacity, and cost problems to guide production decisions.

Benefits

Potential eligibility for long-term incentives in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards.
Potential discretionary bonuses.
Ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage.
Access to a 401(k) retirement plan.
Short- and long-term disability insurance.
Life insurance.
Paid parental leave.
Various other discounts and perks.
May accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation.
Eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year.
Paid sick leave pursuant to company policy.